Reward If Found

Finders keepers works unless the item in question is stolen. In the case of UFC bantamweight Anthony “El Toro” Birchak (12-2), he discussed the importance of rewards shelled out to those who collect bounties of missing belongings during an appearance on episode 86 of Cage Side Submission Radio(CSSR). During Birchak’s time on the podcast, he completed a Venn Diagram with Steve Rychel and Racheal Blaze, the host and co-host of CSSR, that detailed the similarities and differences between retrieving stolen property and earning his next victory at UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Henderson on November 7, 2015 against the undefeated Brazilian Thomas “Thominhas” Almeida (20-0).

The Emotions

In his last outing at UFC Fight Night: Boetsch vs. Henderson on June 6, 2015, Birchak demolished Joe Soto. Previous to Birchak, Soto had competed for the UFC’s bantamweight title, falling short after five rounds. Birchak ended Soto’s night in round 1 at 3:21 with a crushing knockout victory, and he eagerly sought out the ability to ride the wave of his high confidence level,

“I was bugging the hell out of Sean Shelby and Dana White to try and get me back on a card before the end of the year. I really wanted to ride the Joe Soto momentum.”

Enthusiastic to reenter the Octagon, Birchak understands that the best method to sail the seas of success as a professional fighter is to not forget to dock in harbors of patience. He continued,

“I even thought they’d put me on a little sooner than this, but I’ve had some time to really enjoy my family, take a break, and reassess some of my career.”

Photo credit to Josh Hedges Getty Images/Zuffa LLC

Like a well timed body shot, Birchak shared a story that vacuumed the air out of the speakers and, clearly, exhausted some of Birchak’s spirits. He told of when his house was robbed and a ring, designed to commemorate a championship at Maximum Fighting Championships (MFC), was stolen,

“Unfortunately, when I did the whole UFC 177 thing in Sacramento, my house got robbed and cleaned out, and that [the ring] was one of the things that they broke in to grab. They got it, it’s gone!”

The toll of loss taxes emotions, and Birchak hopes to reconnect with his hardware and winning ways when he matches up opposite Almeida.

Photo credit to MMA Frenzy

Publicizing the Event

Posters highlight issues in need of attention. Fight fans flock to events when they see which athletes are prominently pictured, and Birchak aspires to see his own silhouette plastered as the must see attraction. He discussed the importance of his upcoming fight against Almeida,

“This is going to be one of the best fights of my career. This is a huge fight for me at this point in my career. A win over a tough guy like Thomas Almeida puts me right in the top ten, if not higher. That’s something I’ve been gunning for my entire career as a mixed martial artist, to be right at the top of the heap with the best of the world.”

With his UFC career tied in a knot with one win and one loss, Birchak’s mindset only centers on climbing ladders, fearless of heights. He stamped such a sentiment saying,

“I know I belong with those guys.”

Photo credit to Fox Sports

Another usage of posters may be on telephone poles, alerting the community to be on the lookout for stolen goods. Covering every inch of his home state of Arizona with signs reading: Reward If Found, Birchak sat by his phone and awaited any updates from informants. The fine print on the poster read as follows:

“It [the ring] was 3.83 karats and 33 ounces of gold. It was legit; the best championship ring I’ve ever seen. Obviously, it’s mine, so I’m a little biased.”

The uniqueness of Birchak’s finger trophy garnered considerable attention. As a means of speeding up the search, Birchak also posted the payout he’d attach to a reunion with his beloved ring,

“El Toro,” the American, will cross the equator and continental division between North and South America to lock horns with Almeida in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Privy to the chants of, ‘uh vai morrer’ (You’re going to die), anyone not Brazilian is perceived as the enemy, and Birchak happily embraces that role. Killing two birds with one stone, the manner in which Birchak seeks out his MFC ring and how he plans to finish Almeida eerily relate,

“I’ve called pawn shops; I’ve called the police. I keep saying this: I may not have gotten it back last year; I may not get it back this year, but, when I see it-and I will see it, that dude’s got a wicked head kick coming his way. I don’t care who has it on their finger, and I don’t care how they acquired it.”

No police regulate a sanctioned MMA event, but it’s apparent the lengths Birchak will travel to complete a goal-oriented. Birchak will use every second allotted to him to seek truth and justice: The truth being the whereabouts of his championship ring; and the justice in a win validating his place amongst MMA’s elite,

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Email Address

Search

Search for:

Quotes

“You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself.”
-Jim Rohn-

“Believe nothing. No matter where you read it, or who said it, even if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.”
-Buddha-

“If a man for whatever reason has the opportunity to lead an extraordinary life, he has no right to keep it to himself.”
-Jacques-Yves Cousteau-

“If we did all the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves.”
-Thomas A. Edison-

“Life is like a combination lock; your job is to find the right numbers, in the right order, so you can have anything you want.”
-Brian Tracy-

“The “mere-measurement effect” refers to the finding that when people are asked what they intend to do, they become more likely to act in accordance with their answers.”
-Thaler and Sunstein-

“Naming our fears isn’t about confessing guilt. When we linger a bit longer in the details of our uncertainty and doubt, we can see the opportunities that lie hidden beneath.”
-Lucy Calkins-

“I’ve always disliked rereading my writing. It feels good to write; why mar that feeling with a rereading?”
-Don Graves-

“The gi is a mystery; it chokes and pulls and twists around your body. It controls you: By controlling the gi, you control the man inside it.”
-Sam Sheridan-

“Something about stick-to-itiveness and persistence in the face of overwhelming odds was the lesson that he wanted to impart. Tenacity.”
-Art Davie-

“It often surprises kids to learn that writers, almost all writers, research something before they finish writing a piece.”
-Colleen Cruz-

“I’ve observed the sport’s grassroots movement firsthand, and I know MMA is not only going to survive; it’s going to flourish, expand, and become one of the biggest sport in the world.”
-“Big” John McCarthy-

“By sharing our solitude we come both to respect it and to create a door that allows us to leave and return to the essential lonliness from which so much writing comes.”
-Donald Murray-

“I believe it is through the arts that we escape. The artist selects for us what is significant, what we must pay attention to, what will order our world.”
-Donald Murray-

“The thing that kills me about education is that it’s so touchy-feely.”
-Michelle Rhee-

“There is an important “I” quality to work. It is who I am. In our society, we constantly ask people who they are, identifying-and classifying-them by their jobs.”
-Donald Murray-